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GER - Voestalpine unveils new structure for special steel division

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The supervisory board of voestalpine AG has agreed for extensive restructuring of the special steel division Bohler Uddeholm AG, which will focus the division much more strongly on its key area as a highly specialized, global niche supplier of special steel.

Aim of restructuring is to focus the Special Steel Division more strongly on its key areas of High Performance Metals and Special Forgings in addition to reducing management complexity. Welding Consumables area will be assigned to the Railway Systems Division. Precision Strip area will become part of the Profilform Division.

As per announcement “The companies of the High Performance Metals and Special Forgings areas will be combined under their own holding company and will form the future Special Steel Division in the voestalpine Group. Bohler Uddeholm AG remains this holding company. The Welding Consumables area will be assigned to the Railway Systems Division as an independent area because Welding Consumables is an excellent complement to this division’s product range. The Precision Strip area will become part of the Profilform Division.”

The release said that “The new structure will become effective at the beginning of the forthcoming financial year that is as of April 1st 2010. Aim of restructuring is, as already announced, an increase of productivity and efficiency as well as a stronger focus on fewer key areas.”

Until now the Bohler Uddeholm Group has controlled the Welding Consumables, Precision Strip and Special Forgings areas through its own intermediate holding and leading companies; the largest area High Performance Metals has been controlled directly by Bohler Uddeholm AG. Strong growth in the past and the large number of companies has led to a very complex organizational structure with just short of 190 individual companies. In an optimization of the Special Steel Division’s sales structure launched this year, a start has already been made on decreasing the number of affiliated companies in order to reduce complexity, tighten up operations and reduce costs.

 

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